


she's got a way with words

by commanderofraccoons



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Amusement Park, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, F/F, Pokemon GO References, i threw in some canon references also, i wrote this in one night i cannot believe myself, it's unbeta'd again i'm sorry, raven never stops talking i swear, started as a one shot and now we're here
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-15
Updated: 2016-09-11
Packaged: 2018-08-08 21:44:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 20,021
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7774846
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/commanderofraccoons/pseuds/commanderofraccoons
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Excuse me,” a frustrated voice sighed into Clarke’s ear, “I need to get back to my place.”</p><p>Clarke turned around suddenly, feeling her cheeks redden as she took in the girl in front of her. Her brown hair was lazily tossed up in a bun, though no hairs seemed to be trying to escape the black elastic band. She was wearing a dark green shirt with Polis Park printed across it, and her matching shorts were high up her legs. </p><p>Christ, her thigh muscles. </p><p>or </p><p>The "Clarke visits a nearby amusement park with her friends, and she ends up thirsting over the cute girl who works there" AU</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> as this goes on, it gets a little less detailed because i literally wrote it in one night and was getting tired. thanks everyone for the support on this!

Clarke should've figured her old bathing suit top wouldn't fit her boobs anymore. Her mother had seen the black two piece on a Macy’s clearance rack two summers ago and immediately bought it, though she failed to acknowledge the complex ties down the back. Or the lack of breast support for a girl who was going on an E bra size.

 

However, it was an unspoken rule that, when visiting Polis Park, a bathing suit is to be worn underneath your clothing.

 

Not wearing one and going on one of their multiple water rides could be _detrimental_ to your day.

 

Clarke winced as she stood in front of the full length bathroom mirror. Her hair was tied back in a knot at the base of her neck, a few frizzed strands sticking out in every which way. The basketball shorts from sixth grade still managed to fit, albeit uncomfortably, and were already causing her thighs to chafe; her bathing suit top, which couldn't be adjusted any further, had her breasts splayed out for just about anyone to see. She could technically wear this underneath a shirt, sure, but if she would so much as a jog during the day, she might give herself two breast-size black eyes.

 

The floorboards on the other side of the bathroom door creaked slightly, and Clarke stilled. There was a towel balled up on the bathroom sink counter, and if someone were about to knock on the door, she'd at least be able to walk out with her dignity by subtly covering herself.

 

“Clarke?” Her father called, a hint of confusion in his tone. “Your mother told me to remind you that you should have an extra change of clothes packed. I- uh,” he paused, clearing his throat. “You've been in there for some time. Everything okay?”

 

Clarke grimaced and glanced down at the floor, her father’s shadow visible from her side of the door. _Make up something._ “Just… lady problems. Y’know.” She cringed. _Anything but that._

 

Jake was silent for a moment, and Clarke thought he might have just saved them both the embarrassment and walked away. Suddenly, he let out a cough, and the floorboards once against made a creaking sound. “Well, if you need anything, I'll just be in the living room.” Clarke stayed silent, not wanting to make the conversation any more uncomfortable. “And your mother has her phone turned on at work. Just, uh, just in case you'd prefer her. Or something.”

 

Clarke closed her eyes as a throbbing pain began to settle in both her temples. _He probably thinks I need a tampon._

 

“I'm fine, dad. Don't worry about it.”

 

Jake let out an audible sigh and took a step back from the door. “Good, good. I'll just be out here.”

 

Clarke shook her head, a slight smile pulling at the ends of her lips. She loved her father dearly, but she wasn't about to walk into the living room and give him a topless show. His steps began to fade, and Clarke brought herself back to her current predicament.

 

In all honesty, she didn't have the time to run out and buy a new bathing suit; Octavia was due to pick her up in an hour. Not that she really even wanted to try and find a new one. If buying bathing suits in her cup size were an easy feat, she wouldn't be having nearly as much trouble.

 

Grabbing the balled up towel from the counter, Clarke wrapped it around herself and made a face. It was still soaked from her shower, and droplets of water were now dripping down the tied openings on her back. Turning off the bathroom light, Clarke opened the door and hurried across the hall to her room. Once safely inside her room, Clarke dropped the towel to the floor carelessly and glared over at her closet.

 

She had no other bathing suit. Her mother stopped swimming years ago. Clarke had no options. At least she'd be able to keep the bottoms on underneath her basketball shorts. Out of the corner of her eye, Clarke spotted the new sports bra her mother forced her to buy last week. “ _You should start running, Clarke. You're looking a little… Too healthy.”_ Abby wasn't trying to offend her-- Clarke knew that-- but she was a doctor. She'd been getting on Clarke about inactivity for years.

 

A sports bra wouldn't be a terrible second option, she supposed. It was made from almost the same material as a bathing suit, and it was meant to absorb wetness in the same way. Unfortunately, sports bras made Clarke's breasts look like a one-eyed alien. No matter how she adjusted them, only one massive lump in the middle would come from it.

 

She'd just have to wear a baggy shirt.

 

 _Please don't let me run into anyone_ _looking like this._

 

* * *

 

 

“You look real fashionable today, Clarke. Have I told you that yet?”

 

Clarke rolled her eyes and leaned her head up against the car window. Raven was taking every opportunity to make fun of her, and Clarke wanted to actually die.

 

“Octavia has full makeup on,” she motioned over to the driver side, “and you’re wearing jeans, Raven. _Jeans._ It's literally boiling out.”

 

Raven simply shrugged, turning around in the passenger side to face the front. “What's wrong with her makeup?”

 

“Aren't we doing water rides?”

 

“It's waterproof,” Octavia mumbled as she dangerously sped into the turning lane. Clarke sighed as she saw the car next to them actually swerve to avoid a collision.

 

Why the hell didn't they let Raven drive?

 

“Didn't really think of that,” Clarke admitted, suddenly self-conscious of her bare face. Along with her white basketball shorts and sports bra, Clarke had on two different socks-- a Slytherin one and one with Queen Elsa on it. An old pair of Adidas tennis shoes covered them, though their strings were slightly frayed from overuse. Her t-shirt fit her frame a little awkwardly, though it was a nice baby blue color for the weather. Anything darker than that, and Clarke would be suffering with sweat stains.

 

She didn't need to look any worse.

 

“Thank Abby for the free tickets,” Octavia glanced up in the rear view mirror, making eye contact with Clarke in the backseat. “I can't believe the hospital gives away free Polis Park tickets.”

 

“Only, like, twice a year, but I'll tell her.”

 

“You don't need to make a U-turn, O, we’re right here.” Raven frowned, pointing to the parking lot on the left side.

 

“Shit.”

 

Despite having her seat belt tightly fastened, Clarke was tossed forward slightly, causing the belt to lock. She grimaced, using her hand to rub the probable angry red stripe going across her chest.

 

“You were literally up on two wheels around that turn, O,” Raven glanced back at Clarke nervously. “I'm driving your car home before you get us killed.”

 

Octavia nodded as she turned the car into an empty parking lot, seemingly having no problem with Raven’s words. “I hope you're all ready to celebrate being seniors. Our last hurrah before school starts, guys.”

 

Raven snorted, “We’ll celebrate when we’re graduated.”

 

* * *

 

 

“Free parking, Octavia? If you would've told me, I would've just paid. We could've parked closer.” Clarke panted slightly, the sun already beating down on her as they came up to the front gate of the park.

 

“I'm fine with it. I have eggs to hatch,” Raven held up her phone, Pokémon GO clearly visible on her screen.

 

A balding man next to her frowned and glanced over at Raven nervously. Clarke chuckled as he hurried forward with two kids on each side of him. She would have to take Raven’s phone from her before she scared off every older white person in the park.

 

“They really should reconsider their logo. The font’s fine, but I always used to laugh when I saw the PP in big letters, y’know?” Octavia smiled and handed all three of their tickets to the bored-looking boy on their left.

 

“At least the rides have cool names. What are we riding first?” Clarke took the ticket stub from the boy and walked forward with all three of them, making their way over to the security tables.

 

“ _Heda’s Revenge_ is the biggest, so we should probably save that for last. Maybe we can start with the smaller coasters first?” Raven asked, handing her Under Armour sackpack to the blank-faced woman behind the counter. “Or just go in order?”

 

“We’ll figure it out.” Octavia shrugged as they were passed through security. “Or… Well, I guess we have to decide now,” she admitted sheepishly, eyeing the other two.

 

“The line for _Pauna_ is right there,” Raven motioned over to the entrance of the queue with her chin, pulling her sackpack over her shoulders. “Might as well do it while we’re here.”

 

The trio took their place in line, excitedly watching each time as the coaster car launched off from the station. “This is the one without a climb, right?”

 

“Yup. It goes right into it.” Raven smiled, eyes slightly glazed over as the car took off again. “God, Clarke, I'm nutting.”

 

Octavia flinched, smacking Raven’s arm as they moved up in line. “Please never say that in public.”

 

“Leave her alone,” Clarke smiled. “She gets excited over all the mechanical shit. If a ride breaks down today, we’ll have to physically hold her down so she doesn't run off to try and fix it.”

 

“I bet I could.”

 

“We know you could.”

 

“Excuse me,” a frustrated voice sighed into Clarke’s ear, “I need to get back to my place.”

 

Clarke turned around suddenly, feeling her cheeks redden as she took in the girl in front of her. Her brown hair was lazily tossed up in a bun, though no hairs seemed to be trying to escape the black elastic band. She was wearing a dark green shirt with _Polis Park_ printed across it, and her matching shorts were high up her legs.

 

 _Christ, her thigh muscles_.

 

She didn't give Clarke any chance to reply before practically barreling past her and the others in line. Clarke blinked and shook her head. _There goes not running into anyone today._

 

“She was cute,” Raven nodded, an impressed look on her face. “Everyone young who works here is a college kid too. You should try to bang a college girl, Clarke.”

 

Clarke blanched slightly, feeling suddenly uncomfortable at what Raven was implying. She usually didn't freeze up when it came to sexual comments; hell, sexual comments were a constant with Raven around, but the girl had practically bulldozed her over to get past her. Cute, but rude.

 

“Guys, we’re up,” Octavia nudged Raven in the arm. “Remember to put your bags in the basket so nothing gets broken. I don't need to remind you about Bellamy crunching his glasses the last time we were here, do I?”

 

Raven raised a brow lazily and leaned closer to Clarke. “She's kinda the mom friend, isn't she?”

 

“Get better at whispering, Rae,” Octavia deadpanned, swiping her sackpack from her hands. Clarke grinned back at Raven before following Octavia to put her stuff away; her mother’s reminder to pack extra essentials worked, and the bag was much heavier than it should've been-- plus she didn't feel like breaking her sunglasses today.

 

Lowering her bag into the basket, she felt someone brush against her shoulder. She turned her head and clenched her jaw nervously. The cute girl from the line was standing next to her, though she didn't seem as if she was about to yell at Clarke this time.

 

“I’m sorry about earlier,” the girl muttered, looking more than a little uncomfortable. “Titus, my- uh- my boss on this shift is kind of strict. The line at the bathroom was super long, and I didn't think I’d be back in time. I just- I'm sorry. I don't usually do that,” she rambled.

 

“It's fine.” Clarke could feel her face heating up, and she wanted nothing more than to be as far away from the girl as possible, especially if she was going to keep apologizing.

 

Clarke saw her friends already seated in the coaster car, and when she made eye contact with Raven, the girl fluttered her eyebrows dramatically, pointing in the direction of the cute girl.

 

“I'm Lexa.” Clarke jumped, not realizing that the other girl was still intent on speaking.

 

“Uh, Clarke. I'm Clarke,” she smiled politely, sidestepping the other girl so she could take her place in the car before the ride took off. Ignoring the glare from the bald man near the controls, Clarke stepped past the safety line and took a seat behind Octavia and next to Raven. Breathing a sigh of relief, she settled back in her seat as the workers went down the line for the safety check.

 

A girl with impeccable cheekbones and a hard stare was just in front of them-- pulling on seat belts and pushing down on safety bars. Clarke thought the girl would be checking their car as well, but she turned around in the direction and went directly toward a large button on the wall. Just when Clarke was about to start panicking, the girl from earlier, Lexa, stood beside her car on the tracks and smiled. She leaned across Clarke and yanked on her seat belt roughly, making sure it was in working condition. Lowering the safety bar in place for Clarke and Raven, she leaned close to Clarke’s ear and mumbled, “Anya probably thought you were already checked, but you're secure now.” Lexa smiled and stepped back from the track, her eyes never leaving Clarke’s.

 

Clarke felt a little guilty for practically running away from her now.

 

Raven chuckled, shaking her head at Clarke in disbelief. “Believe it or not, when I said bang the college girl, I wasn't being serious.”

 

“Go for it, Clarke,” Octavia turned in her seat and winked.

 

Just as Clarke was about to reply, the coaster took off from the station.

 

She could've sworn she heard the girl with the cheekbones laugh and say, “Lexa, you're so fucking gay,” as they were going by.

 

* * *

 

 

When they returned to the station, all three of them were wobbly on their feet. After a short debate, it was agreed that Raven would be the one to retrieve all of their bags. Subtly glancing around the station, Clarke was disappointed to find that all of the workers had been replaced with new ones during their ride.

 

“I still can't believe Clarke is able to pick up women looking like _that_ ,” Raven smirked as they walked out of the exit. “Imagine what she could do here if she actually looked decent.”

 

“What the fuck, Raven?” Clarke rolled her eyes and tugged the bottom of her shirt down a bit. Now was not the time for Raven to remind her that she looked like shit. “I don't look _that_ bad.”

 

“Can we get food?” Octavia pouted and grabbed her stomach. Not a moment later, her stomach audibly growled over the usual sounds of an amusement park.

 

“Jesus, O.”

 

“It was a long ride.”

 

Before the girls could start arguing again, Clarke grabbed them both by the elbows and pulled them to the nearest food booth, which surprisingly didn't have much of a line. Octavia and Raven ordered before her, and despite asking them to wait for her so they could all pick a table, they both walked off before she could get their attention. Sighing, she ordered her food and stood uncomfortably at the front of the booth. Neither of her friends were in sight, and her food was about to be given to her. She'd probably have to find a table by herself. Clarke nervously eyed all of the taken seats; if she could find one, that is.

 

“You look lost.”

 

Clarke blinked. Lexa was next to her again.

 

She wasn't sure how she felt about that. Like Raven was continuously pointing out, Clarke didn't exactly look her best today. Still, she was confident enough in her looks not to be too put off by it.

 

“Where'd your friends go?” Lexa asked, leaning up against the side of the food stand and crossing her arms over her chest.

 

“Not sure.” Clarke frowned, looking back in the direction she had last seen her friends. “I'll probably find them a little later.”

 

Lexa nodded, finally going silent. Clarke softly smiled at the other girl, feeling her heartbeat speed up with Lexa still standing next to her. If she didn't know any better, Clarke would almost think Lexa was nervous. The man behind the counter handed her a cardboard box filled to the brim with fattening food, and Clarke’s stomach growled in response just as Octavia’s did earlier.

 

Lexa snorted, her arms falling to her sides. Clarke blushed and glared at the girl still leaning against the wall. “It's been a long morning. Leave me alone.”

 

They smiled at each other, and Clarke grabbed the rest of the food from the vendor before moving out of the line. “Would you like to come sit with me?” Lexa asked, voice quivering just a bit. “I'm on my lunchbreak.”

 

Clarke had a few options-- unlike her previous bathing suit top situation. She could search for her friends, which would most likely end up taking much longer than she wanted and result in some extremely cold food, or she could sit with the cute girl she knew nothing about.

 

If she got out of this alive, she wouldn't be telling her parents about this decision.

 

“Yeah, sure.”

 

Lexa stepped in front of her, leading Clarke to a table. Clarke held her food protectively against her chest, slightly paranoid that someone would try to snatch it away from her. Her drink was tightly clenched in her left hand, and if she squeezed any harder, it would spill out overtop the lid. Peeking over the box, Clarke couldn't help but notice the way Lexa’s legs flexed when she walked. Not to mention the area _above_ her legs. She was a hormone-crazed teenager; she couldn't help it.

 

“I already had my stuff here,” Lexa mumbled, “I hope you don't mind.”

 

“You left your food unattended?” Clarke asked, a smirk playing on her lips.

 

“Figured I'd be right back.”

 

They locked eyes, and both them began to smile at the same time. Breaking eye contact, Clarke set her food down, settling in across from Lexa. _If Raven could see me now._

 

“I'm sorry,” Lexa started, earning a frown from Clarke. “I've been… I guess I’ve been following you around. I'm sorry if it's rubbed you the wrong way or anything.”

 

Clarke picked a fry from her food, twirling it between her pointer finger and thumb absentmindedly. “It's funny,” she smiled, “I- well, when I'm with my friends, I'm usually the one constantly saying sorry.”

 

Lexa tilted her head to the side, a wave of confusion crossing over her expression. _She looks a little like a dog._ “Why?”

 

“Why what?”

 

“Why are you always apologizing?”

 

Clarke was silent for a moment and placed the fry in her mouth. She didn't know why, really. Half of the time, she didn't even notice she was doing it. Murphy was usually the one who told her to stop.

 

“Habit, I guess.”

 

Lexa took a sip from her drink and kept her gaze locked on Clarke. Neither of them spoke for a while after that; they ate in silence-- a surprisingly comfortable one. Clarke had only been on one ride so far in her time in the park, but she'd already had quite an interesting day. Her red mark from the car seat belt was probably starting to bruise if the pain in her chest was anything to go by, and she was sitting across from a complete stranger telling her why she was always taking the blame for things. In all honesty, Clarke wasn't sure if she could take much more today.

 

Just when Clarke was trying to figure out ways to find Raven and Octavia afterward, she noticed Lexa’s lips were moving.

 

_Oh._

 

Lexa was speaking.

 

“Sorry, what?”

 

Lexa blinked, still smiling. “You just apologized.”

 

“Oh, shit, sorry.”

 

They stared at each for a moment, their faces both turning a deep red. Lexa chuckled a little, and Clarke playfully narrowed her eyes at her. _Her eyes are the same color as her shirt._ _Nice thigh muscles and green eyes? She probably has abs too._

 

“I was asking what your last name was. I realized I didn't tell you mine when I introduced myself.” Lexa looked back down and took another sip from her drink. “Lexa Woods.”

 

Clarke nodded, popping another fry in her mouth. “Clarke Griffin.”

 

“Nice to officially meet you, Clarke Griffin.” Lexa grinned.

 

Clarke shook her head and leaned back in her seat. “Right back ‘atcha, Woods.”

 

“Are you done with your food?” Lexa asked, a bright smile on her face. “I can throw it away for you.”

 

Clarke nodded, pushing her food across the table for Lexa to grab. Without looking back at her, Lexa grabbed both boxes and walked away, leaving Clarke alone for a short moment.

 

_“You should try to bang the college girl, Clarke.”_

 

If she rolled her eyes hard enough, she hoped that Raven’s voice would stop trying to act as her conscious. More often than not, she heard Raven tempting her to do something, and most of the time it was tempting her to do the wrong thing. However, Raven _was_ right about Octavia being the mom friend; if only she had her voice in her head instead. Maybe she wouldn't make such terrible decisions.

 

_Like bang the cute college girl._

 

Well, that wasn't happening. Not today, at least.

 

Without her realizing it, Lexa had sat herself down and was staring at Clarke expectantly. _I hope she wasn't talking again._

 

“What?”

 

“I didn't say anything.”

 

“Oh.”

 

Lexa frowned, shifting slightly in her seat uncomfortably. Clarke didn't mean to keep tuning her out; she just kept getting distracted.

 

“What's it- what's it like to work here?” Clarke asked curiously, leaning her elbows on the table top. “When I was little, I always thought it'd be cool to be in charge of the rides. Is it true they only hire college students?”

 

Lexa looked a bit surprised-- Clarke supposed she must not have expected her to try to start a conversation after that.

 

“We do have some older people here. They're usually security or they sell tickets. The rest of us come from Polis University though,” Lexa shrugged. “They try to make sure their students have jobs since they own both the park and the school.” She brushed an invisible speck of dirt from her shoulder. “I'm not- I don't really like it here,” she admitted, still not making eye contact with Clarke. “Especially on the days where I have to wear the black shirt with the green writing on it. The heat can be a little too much when you have a black shirt on.”

 

Clarke nodded, unsure of how to respond. She didn't really expect Lexa to tell her that she didn't like working here-- it didn't seem like the girl was too familiar with that much social interaction. _She's probably only keeping me company because she still feels bad about earlier._

 

 _“_ But it's a job,” Lexa continued when Clarke failed to say anything. “It's not the best thing in the world, but it could be worse, right?”

 

Clarke nodded, eyes not entirely focused on Lexa. “Yeah, yeah, it could.”

 

“Clarke!”

 

Her eyes widened when she noticed that Lexa’s lips did not, in fact, move that time. Someone else was calling for her. She turned around in her seat to look behind her and saw Octavia and Raven standing next to the food stand from earlier.

 

“Looks like you found your friends.” Lexa stood up from her chair, a small smile on her lips once again. “It really was nice to meet you, Clarke Griffin.”

 

Clarke grinned and brought a hand up to wave at her. “Right back ‘atcha, Woods.”

 

* * *

 

 

Clarke, Octavia, and Raven had been on seven rides since Clarke’s lunch with Lexa earlier. After some blatant teasing from Raven, the topic of Lexa had died down among them. Not for lack of curiosity-- rather that they hadn't seen Lexa since. They figured they'd see her working on another ride, but hours had passed, and none of them had gotten so much as a glimpse of her.

 

The sun was finally setting in the sky-- to absolutely everyone’s delight. A few hours ago, the heat had gotten so overwhelming that they were forced to go on a few water rides, much to Octavia’s dismay. In short, her waterproof makeup faced the ultimate test, and it failed it.

 

“I still look like a raccoon,” Octavia whined, staring at herself in the reflection of the queue line railing.

 

“We wiped it off as best we could in that bathroom.” Raven appeared on the left side of Octavia’s shoulder, staring down at her reflection with her.

 

“I can't believe none of you brought makeup with you,” she muttered, a pout firmly in place.

 

“Water rides, Octavia. They're a thing.”

 

“It's our last ride of the night, guys,” Clarke breathed out, ignoring the girls by looking up at the massive statue in front of the roller coaster.

 

“The incline is so slow on this. I'm gonna have to be on the side with the steps just in case it breaks.”

 

“That's because it's the highest coaster in the park, O.”

 

“But the best,” Clarke argued. “We've waited all day for this ride.”

 

 _“Heda’s Revenge_ , man.” Raven shook her head, watching the coaster car shakily inch up to the top.

 

“My makeup looks like the girl’s on the statue.” Octavia buried her face in her hands, muffling a loud groan.

 

“Girl? You mean the _heda?_ Who this whole ride revolves around?” Raven asked, eyes wide. “And her revenge? Which will probably be on you now, O.”

 

Octavia dropped her hands from her face and peered up at the statue, still looking a bit glum. “Fine, fine, heda. What does that even mean anyway?”

 

“Commander,” Clarke answered immediately, eyes focused on the metal plaque on the right side of the queue line. “It means commander.”

 

“The statue looks a little like Aang’s statue from _Legend of Korra_ ,” Octavia pointed to the walking stick the statue held out in front of her, “It's like Aang’s little airbending one.”

 

“Nah.” Raven shook her head, elbowing Octavia in the arm. “It looks a little like Clarke’s new girlfriend.”

 

At that, Clarke stopped admiring the statue and was now facing Raven. “What?”

 

“The Lexa girl. Looks kinda like her.”

 

“How can you even make out a face?” Octavia scoffed. “She's got warpaint smeared all over her. She could be facially based off Kendal Jenner, and we'd never know it.”

 

Raven and Clarke both stared at Octavia for a moment, unsure if the girl was expecting a response from either of them. Shaking her head, Raven handed her bag to Clarke, “You put ‘em in the basket this time, okay? I'm done for the night.”

 

Sighing, Clarke walked over to the side of the station with all three of their bags and plopped them in the uncharacteristically empty basket. She supposed the other riders had their belongings with the people who weren't riding.

 

“Long time, no see, Clarke Griffin.”

 

Clarke couldn't stop the grin from forming if she tried.

 

“Hi, Lexa.”

 

“Which one is yours?” She asked, pointing down to the three bags at the bottom of the basket. “People like to steal them while the owners are on the ride. I can keep it safe for you.”  Lexa winked, and Clarke’s cheeks were beginning to hurt from smiling so big.

 

“The red one,” she pointed toward it and took a step in the direction of the coaster cars. “Don't want a repeat of last time. Let me go find a seat.”

 

Lexa nodded and grabbed a notepad from the side of the control station while Clarke once again seated herself next to Raven and behind Octavia.

 

“We’re in, girls. No turning back now.”

 

Raven whooped and aggressively pulled their safety bar down.

 

“This is my favorite ride,” Lexa appeared from the right side of Clarke and leaned over to check her seat belt.

 

“Yeah? Why's that?” Clarke asked, fighting off a giddy giggle because Lexa shared the same favorite ride as her.

 

“Not sure,” Lexa admitted and leaned over a little further to check Raven’s seat belt, who was watching them curiously. “The screams, maybe.”

 

“The screams?”

 

“Yeah.” Lexa smirked, straightening up, “Heda makes everyone scream.”

 

 

* * *

 

 

Later that night, Clarke was finally settled in her room. She’d barely passed her dad-- who was still unfortunately asking her if she needed anything. Perhaps she should tell him that it wasn't her time of the month; he seemed a little unsettled around her, after all. He'd also asked her every detail of her day, and she knew that her mother would be doing the same when she got home a little later that night. Half her outfit had been carelessly left on the floor like the towel from that morning, but Clarke was simply too exhausted to care. The day had been draining, and though Clarke enjoyed it, she was in no mood to clean tonight. She'd happily deal with her mother’s complaining in the morning.

 

Reaching over for her bag on the end of the bed, Clarke unfastened the string and let the items fall out on the top layer of her bedsheets. Clothes scattered everywhere, and she groaned as she tried to find the other sock that she stuffed in the bag earlier that morning. Instead, her hand found a crumbled up piece of paper. Frowning, Clarke brought her to face, examining it confusedly. She definitely didn't put this in her bag; unless it was there from when she used it previously. Shaking her head, she opened it.

 

_Your eyes matched the color of your shirt._

 

_Call me._

 

_Lexa Woods_

 

There was a number messily scrawled at the bottom of the paper with a little smiley face drawn next to it.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clarke has yet to call Lexa, and they're both panicking about it.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> by popular demand, this has been turned into a multi-chapter fic. i'm not really sure how long this will end up being, but i'll have to figure out a decent plot for the rest of it. the first chapter is most likely going to be the longest, since it was just going to be a one shot. the rest should be around this length, maybe a little longer.

Clarke was facing a dilemma.

 

Does she save Lexa’s number under _Cute Girl, Legs,_ or just… well, _Lexa Woods_.

 

Originally, she didn't think this would be an issue. Not until both Raven and Octavia told her that contact names went quite a long way, especially when emojis are brought into it.

 

It's not like Lexa would see what her contact name was on Clarke’s phone, right? Why did this even matter?

 

She groaned, throwing her phone face down on her comforter. Three days had passed since Clarke met Lexa at Polis Park, and she had yet to contact her. The note said to call her, but who really did that anymore anyway? Texting was the preferred method of contact here in the year of 2016.

 

Leaning back against her headboard, Clarke set the crumpled piece of paper, which looked like it had been through literal hell, on the end table next to her bed. Clarke was probably going to lose Lexa’s number if she didn't enter it into her phone under something soon enough; she wasn't too good at being organized, and her mother was probably aching to throw the wrinkled paper in the trash as soon as she got the chance.

 

Clarke could change Lexa’s contact name at any time. Right now, she should focus on making sure she didn't lose it and end up never seeing the brunette girl again.

 

“Hey, kid?” Taking her eyes off the paper on her end table, she found her father standing in the doorway, a small smile playing on his lips. “Your mom has to leave for work in a bit, and I'm a little hungry.” He scrunched up his nose and patted his stomach. “How about we go out for breakfast together? We haven't done that in a while.”

 

Clarke couldn't help but feel a little guilty. She'd been so busy preparing for her last year of high school this summer-- college searching, deciding majors, financial aid, and whatever the hell else had to be done-- that she put her parents on the back burner of importance. She made sure she still spent enough time with her friends, especially since it wasn't a guarantee that they'd all be going to the same school when next year came around. No matter where Clarke decided for school, she supposed she'd always have Abby and Jake there for support. They'd be in her life no matter what. With school starting back up in the next week or so, she figured she should start trying to make amends for ignoring both of them during much of the summer.

 

“Yeah, we can do that.” Clarke stood from the bed and grabbed her phone. 81%. Good enough. She'd just have to put it on low power mode if she was going to be out for longer than planned.

 

Jake wrapped an arm around her shoulder and gently patted her on the back. “Mom said she can't come with us, but that's okay.” He shrugged and opened Clarke’s door a little wider. “Where are we going? You decide. I know you'd practically kill people for eggs.”

 

* * *

 

 

Breakfast with her father was definitely eventful. Just like her dad had said she would, Clarke inhaled the eggs as soon as they were placed in front of her. Jake thought it was hilarious, of course, even though his own breakfast portions were twice the size of hers.

 

In all honesty, they were both pretty embarrassing. An elderly couple was seated in the booth across from them, and they made their disgust of the two pretty clear. Jake and Clarke decided to make it a sort of game. Every time they ordered something new, the hunchback man with his overgrown eyebrows would turn his nose up at them and cross his wrinkled forearms over his chest. Whenever their voices would raise higher than what was deemed appropriate for indoors, the man’s wife would push her reading classes up the bridge of her hawk-like nose and stare them down until they stopped.

 

Her unforgiving glare reminded Clarke of Lexa’s coworker from the park-- the one with the cheekbones. She thinks Lexa might've said her name was Anya.

 

“Sorry we got stuck next to Eunice and Harold for breakfast.” Jake grinned, standing behind Clarke as they made their way back through the front door. “Make sure your mother and I don't end up like that.”

 

Clarke closed the door with her foot, never breaking eye contact with her father. “Mom would probably end up being Eunice if she didn't have you around.”

 

Jake chuckled and walked toward the living room where he was supposedly working on some project for work. Why her father didn't use the spare room for his engineering, Clarke would never know. Abby had been trying to get him to move his stuff there for years now.

 

Glancing at the clock in the kitchen, Clarke realized that Abby would've already left for work. She frowned-- she was nowhere in sight when Jake and Clarke left for breakfast. She'd have to wait until after her mom was off call to see her.

 

However, after opening her bedroom door, Clarke froze. The clothes that were previously strewn all about her room were no longer there. In fact, she could see her mauve bedroom carpet better than she had in a few weeks. The day after going to Polis Park, Clarke was right about Abby begging her to straighten up a little in her room. Her mother must've had enough this morning and cleaned it while she and her father angered two old people at the local _Bob Evans_.

 

She immediately scanned the rest of the room, her eyes falling on her bare end table.

 

Clarke, you fucking idiot.

 

* * *

 

 

Lexa was anxious. Not a happy sort of anxious either, but a nerve wracking one. Giving her number to the girl she had basically stalked for an entire day was probably a terrible decision. Originally, she had sought the girl out because she felt guilty for almost knocking her over. As she talked to her, Lexa realized the blonde was kind of adorable, even if her outfit choice was a little questionable. _I probably came off too strong._ What did the girl know even know about her? Her first and last name, where she worked, and that she went to Polis University. Lexa didn't know too much about Clarke either; hell, she didn't even know if she was a college student or not. This sort of thing was completely out of character for Lexa, and she's not entirely sure she made the right choice.

 

“Stop pacing. Once they test the ride one more time, they're opening it back up.”

 

Lexa turned to Anya, who was relaxing in the control booth with her feet crossed on top of the emergency brake switch. Groaning, Lexa stepped forward and grabbed Anya’s shoes, yanking them upward and letting them drop on the table next to the board. “They're not going to be testing anything with your feet pressing the wrong buttons.”

 

Anya rolled her eyes and pursed her lips slightly as Lexa began pacing again. “What's life without a little risk, Lex? If she calls you, she calls you. If she texts you, she texts you.” She threw her hands up over her head in exasperation. “If she never reaches out to you ever in your life, guess what? You don't have to worry about it because you'll never have to see her again. You still win.”

 

“Hasn't it been long enough? Don't you think she would've made a move by now?” Lexa frowned, stopping her pacing and standing directly in front of Anya.

 

“Well, you never want to look desperate,” Anya stated, matter-of-factly. “It's usually three days, but honestly, it differs from person to person, Lex.”

 

“I wish I had her number instead,” Lexa mumbled, lazily sitting herself down in the chair next to Anya. “I would've already reached out to her by now.”

 

Anya snorted, “Yeah right.”

 

“What?”

 

“No, you wouldn't have.”

 

“What are you talking about?”

 

Rolling her eyes, Anya stood from her chair and walked in front of the control board. She stopped in front of Lexa and leaned forward. “You'd still be doing the same thing. Instead you'd just be asking when it's clear to text her. Or what exactly you _should_ say to her. No matter who had whose number, I'd still be in hell.”

 

“Well, that's rude.”

 

Anya sighed, looking away from Lexa and glancing over at the mechanics working on part of the station track. Thankfully the ride broke before leaving the station and not at the top of the incline; Anya isn't sure she could deal with frantic people stuck at the highest part of a roller coaster on top of Lexa’s anxiety. “Look, Lexa, I get it,” she started, refusing to meet Lexa’s gaze. “You're super gay, the blonde was cute, and you were thirsty.”

 

“I wasn't thirs-”

 

“Don't interrupt me,” Anya narrowed her eyes, now glaring in Lexa’s direction. “You're always with the talking.”

 

“Isn't that a quote from Cr-”

 

“Lexa, I fucking swear.”

 

“Sorry, sorry.”

 

“Look,” she continued, “Maybe blondie is straight. She probably just thought you were just being nice until you slipped a gay love note in her bag.”

 

“I could've sworn that sh-”

 

“Your gaydar, I know.”

 

The two descended into silence after that. Anya was watching the one mechanic attempt to fix his plumber’s crack, while Lexa sat transfixed by the flashing lights on the control board. She could probably find Clarke on Facebook, since Lexa knew her full name. Unless the girl didn't have one, or went under something different to avoid being looked up. It wouldn't hurt to look; she would try it a little later when her phone wasn't dead.

 

“You surprised me.”

 

Lexa frowned and looked back up to Anya. Her back was still to her, but she could see the side of her face from where she was sitting.

 

“You were bummed after you and Costia broke up, that's all,” Anya explained. “I just didn't expect you to go after a new girl so soon.”

 

“We've been broken up for two years now.” Lexa sighed, a knot forming in her stomach at hearing the name. It wasn't often that people said Costia’s name in front of her, but Lexa was beginning to move past it. Thankfully, she had the support behind her to keep trudging on.

 

“Yeah, but it's you, Lex. You're all sappy and romantic and shit,” Anya muttered, and Lexa could swear the side of her face was turning a light shade of pink.

 

“Thanks.” Lexa frowned. “I think.”

 

“I'm proud of you, Lex.” Anya leaned her arms back against the control board, still facing the workers on the track. “I really am.”

 

* * *

 

 

“You lost it,” the voice through her phone speaker said in disbelief. “Griffin, I can't believe you fucking _lost_ it.”

 

“Raven, I didn't lose it,” Clarke snapped to the empty room. Her phone was sitting on her comforter with the speaker on as Clarke frantically threw everything out from her underneath her bed. “My mom threw it away. I knew exactly where it was.”

 

“Did you check the garbage?”

 

“Tried to.” Clarke groaned, moving a shoe box out of her way. Maybe the paper had fallen underneath when her mother started cleaning that morning; maybe Lexa’s paper wasn't actually gone. “Did you know it was garbage day, Raven? Make sure your fucking trash is in front of your house because it's _garbage day_.” Clarke added, “I'm about to put myself out there and hope they come back.”

 

“So she took out the garbage before leaving for work.” Raven sighed, ignoring Clarke’s comment about calling herself trash. “What if she didn't throw it away? She could've read it and put it somewhere else. Text her and ask her.”

 

“She's on call. I won't be able to talk to her until she's done working today.”

 

“Text her now, and maybe she’ll respond later.”

 

“Raven,” Clarke whined, letting her head fall on the side of the mattress. “She's a surgeon performing _surgeries_. She's a little too busy to text back saying where she put a shitty little piece of paper.”

 

Raven said nothing, and Clarke didn't move from her pathetic position.

 

“You seriously didn't save her number to your phone, Clarke?”

 

“Well, that's your fault.” Clarke pulled herself up from the floor and sadly stared down at the empty end table. The only thing there now was an intricately designed picture frame of a four year old Clarke with her parents on each side of her. She couldn't remember that day, but she had heard the story of Clarke throwing up on a little boy’s shoes after she got off her first ever kiddie roller coaster. Of course the picture was at Polis Park; she flipped the frame facing down. “You made me think too hard about what to save her number under.”

 

“Clarke, it was a joke. You didn't even take a picture of the paper?”

 

“No.”

 

“Well, that was stupid.”

 

“Fuck you.”

 

“Find her on Facebook. Reach out to her on there.”

 

“I should,” Clarke agreed, flopping back down on the left side of her bed. “Y’know, I fucked around with that paper for three days, Raven. Some of the letters were starting to fade because of how much I was touching it. I can't believe I didn't end up memorizing it.”

 

“I have an idea.”

 

Clarke blinked, glancing over at the phone next to her. A selfie of a drunken Raven with a crooked snapback on and her tongue lazily falling out of her mouth was on her screen. Making that Raven’s contact picture probably wasn't the best idea. “What's that?”

 

“You don't know her number, and-”

 

“No shit.”

 

“Clarke, please.”

 

“Sorry.”

 

“You don't know her number,” Raven continued, voice sounding a tad bit excited, “but you do know where she works.”

 

“What's that have to do with anything?” Clarke frowned, leaning back against her pillows.

 

“I say we go back to the park tomorrow and you can try to find Lexa.”

 

Clarke didn't say anything for a moment, too stunned to even think up a response.

 

“Clarke?” Raven called through the phone, most likely thinking Clarke had hung up her.

 

She should've.

 

“Those tickets aren't cheap, Rae.”

 

“You said the hospital is giving them away free. That's how we got the tickets this week.”

 

“Well, yeah, but I already used up my mom’s free tickets, and-”

 

“Your mom,” Raven stopped her, “is the best damn surgeon at that hospital, Clarke. I'm sure you can manipulate one of the pretty nurses into getting you two more free tickets. You're damn good at that.”

 

“Two? Why two?”

 

“We don't need to involve O with this. She's stressing out about senior year. Besides, it's hard to go to the park and ride anything with an uneven number of people.”

 

“We’re seriously going to go on rides tomorrow?”

 

“We don't want to waste the tickets, Clarke.”

 

“And what if she’s not working tomorrow? I don't know her schedule.” Clarke bit her bottom lip gently, pulling it into her mouth nervously.

 

“She probably does. I've heard they run their college workers rampant in the summertime.”

 

Clarke didn't respond and studied the pattern in her ceiling. This was definitely a more dramatic approach to her problem-- the Facebook search would've cleared up things a whole lot easier. Still, Lexa was definitely interested, and she probably thought Clarke was a little creeped out by her method of hitting on her. Going back to the park was a bold move, but it would probably smooth over any unresolved issue between the two.

 

“Clarke, your mom definitely threw out that piece of paper. I've seen her vacuum, and it's fucking scary.” Raven chuckled. “I say we go tomorrow, you try to find your girl, maybe we ride a few things along the way, and all will be well. Okay?”

 

“Fine,” Clarke relented, inwardly groaning at having to deal with not having a bathing suit yet again tomorrow.

 

“If she's not there, or we can't find her, we resort to Facebook.”

 

“Facebook should realistically be checked first.”

 

“Yeah, but she could have her page on private. It could take her months to accept a friend request if she doesn't get on often.”

 

“I already agreed to go, Raven.”

 

“Good. It's the more romantic choice anyway.” Raven laughed loudly, filling the entire room with sound. Her dad probably heard that from the living room. “Now go pay Abby a visit.”

 

“I already told you she's-”

  
“Yeah, yeah, I know.” Clarke could practically feel Raven rolling her eyes. “In surgery. Flirt with a nurse or two so you can bang your college girl, Griffin.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clarke and Raven return to Polis Park in an attempt to find Lexa.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a few things
> 
> 1\. goal for chapter four: not to start it with clarke's name  
> 2\. there was a spelling mistake in chapter one that i didn't catch, but it's fixed now  
> 3\. this chapter wasn't supposed to be this long, and a lot of it isn't even clexa interaction i'm sorry  
> 4\. i love all of you holy shit

Clarke wasn't happy with Raven. In fact, she could probably beat her black and blue at the moment.

 

That might've been taking it too far, but Clarke could definitely settle for a nice nose punch.

 

“Clarke, is there a documentary about Nicki Minaj’s verse in _Monster_? Someone should make one.”

 

That was it. That was the eighth time. She was finished-- no way could she take anymore. “Raven,” Clarke spit, her jaw clenching as she attempted to keep her tone under control. “Raven, we listened to that song the _entire_ way up here,” she breathed out. “I know it's, like, _the_ rap verse, but can't we talk about this later?” Sighing loudly, she closed her eyes. “God, I should've brought O with me.”

 

“Hold on there, Clarke. First you tell me I'm not allowed to make fun of you with that one Proclaimers song,” Raven scoffed. “Now you're telling me I can't talk about Nicki Minaj? Or any of my interests?”

 

Clarke ignored her and kept walking forward with her eyes barely open, feet absolutely aching from making repeated contact with the concrete. She wasn't actually upset with Raven, but she was really starting to grate her nerves. They'd been in Polis Park for over three hours now and had yet to find any sign of Lexa. The place wasn't small in the slightest-- it was one of the biggest amusement parks in Eastern America, but it had a simple layout. She'd passed the same caged gorilla-- or pauna-- display multiple times now, and Raven made sure to remind Clarke that it was a Pokéstop each time. There were sweat stains on her back, her make-up had started to smear, and her breasts were once again contained in a hellish sports bra.

 

She wanted death.

 

She'd made sure to dress a little nicer this time, making an effort with both her face and clothing. Three hours of walking, however, did very little to keep it that way.

 

At this point, Lexa would probably keel over if she saw Clarke looking decent.

 

“But Clarke would walk five hundred miles,” Raven sang in a pseudo-Scottish accent, smugly smiling. “And Clarke would walk five hundred more. Just to be one who walks a thousand miles to… Get laid?”

 

She stopped walking, briefly closing her eyes again before looking out ahead of her. No, she wouldn't turn around and give the Raven the satisfaction of snapping. Clarke could handle this; it could be settled peacefully.

 

“Enough,” Clarke managed, coming out no louder than a whisper.

 

Raven stopped, eyes widening slightly at Clarke. When Clarke yelled, it was usually in a joking sort of manner. If her friend raised her voice, it meant that she wasn't _truly_ angry. Lowering her tone meant something completely different. It meant real frustration. Little patience. She bit her lip nervously, brows furrowing as she studied Clarke’s tense posture from behind. Even though she drove them both here, Raven hadn’t done much more than that when it came to actually helping her friend. Today wasn't supposed to be about queueing nausea-inducing rides and stuffing their faces with pounds and pounds of different foods--- that had been a few days ago. They were here for a different purpose, but Raven was just trying to lighten the mood. It was possible that Lexa wasn't in the park today, and if she was, the odds of them actually finding her were slim to none. Saying what she thought to Clarke simply wasn't an option; the girl would be openly devastated. All Raven wanted to do today was take Clarke’s mind off their current situation. It wasn't hard to guess that she'd be stressed, and Raven hated seeing her friend like that.

 

“You actually like this girl, don't you?” Raven asked, deciding not to say what she'd been thinking. She wouldn't say it until they were on their way out of the park. Maybe when it closed. Maybe never.

 

Clarke saw her friend start walking slowly again out of the corner of her eye, and she followed right behind her. “I'm not sure,” she admitted, feeling a bit embarrassed. “But we've already come this far.” Shrugging, she skimmed the crowds once again for any sign of the brunette. So Clarke probably liked her, that was true. But she didn't _know_ her. Isn't that what they were here for? To get the option to know her?

 

Raven nodded, figuring it wouldn't be wise to further discuss the topic. She'd been the one to sort of push Clarke toward Lexa, but Clarke had taken it upon herself to really pursue the other girl. She supposed they were both to blame, really.

 

“She has to be working, right?” Clarke asked, seeking reassurance that their day trip hadn't been all for naught. “I mean, she was here that entire day last time. From our first ride to our last one.”

 

“Told you.” Raven nodded, pushing a strand of hair that had fallen out of her ponytail behind her ear. She wasn't going to say it. “They treat their workers like literal shit here.”

 

The sun had to be blazing hotter than it was a few days before. Raven texted her last night telling her to be prepared for water rides after peeking at the weather forecast for today. Clarke didn't know the current temperature, and she frankly didn't want to know. Her sore thighs were still angry and blistering from their last trip here, and the walking today was just aggravating them further. If Lexa wasn't here, Clarke would make a vow of celibacy. Relationships were pointless.

 

“By the way,” Raven started, a tinge of nervousness in her voice. “I posted that one snapchat video to my story earlier, and that was- well, it was really stupid.”

 

“What?” Clarke frowned. “Stupid how?”

 

“I didn't tell Octavia we were doing this,” Raven admitted, grimacing. “Honestly, I figured you'd have a hard time scoring two tickets, let alone three. I feel bad.” She pouted, gaze transfixed on her phone screen.

 

Clarke's eyes widened, and she immediately stopped walking. “She already watched it?” At Raven’s nod, Clarke groaned and tilted her head back to face the cloudless sky. “We can deal with that later,” she said hesitantly.

 

They stood there for a moment silently, both feeling a little guilty for leaving out their other friend. Raven _had_ said that she was too busy stressing over school to be bothered with this sort of thing though. If they managed to find Lexa today, then they could save their Octavia predicament for another day. One that wasn't today. After silently agreeing to keep walking, Clarke and Raven went back to searching every nook and cranny in the park to find Lexa. They'd searched hidden alleyways and wide open food courts, but neither of them had spotted her. Clarke and Raven were in the middle of cutting another queue line when Raven tapped her on the shoulder.

 

“You never told me how you got the tickets. Did your mom just give them to you?”

 

Clarke winced, remembering what exactly had transpired at her mother’s work yesterday. If Abby Griffin hadn't been told by one of her coworkers about it yet, she would know soon enough. She felt horrible about it-- she really did-- but desperate times had called for desperate measures.

 

“I took your advice,” Clarke muttered, not wanting to recount this story to another living person. There were enough witnesses in the surgery area waiting room who could tell the story on their own. “I flirted with the one nurse. The head of the surgery floor or whatever. She knew whose daughter I was.”

 

Raven laughed, patting Clarke on the back jokingly. “Flirting with one lady just so you could flirt with another. You have such game, Griffin.”

 

“If only.” She shook her head. “You know Niylah? That's the one. Well, I was talking to her, and she was definitely coming on to me when I was making the little comments, right?” Clarke stopped in the queue line and turned to face Raven. “I went around the other side of the desk, and I was talking to her… We were kind of flirting?” Her voice raised in pitch toward the end, as if she were asking herself a question. “Basically, Rae, I was about to give her a shoulder massage when her boyfriend came in saying he left his key to their apartment at the hospital after their lunch together.”

 

Raven gaped, though a ghost of smile was on her lips. “What'd he do when he saw you making moves on his lady?”

 

Clarke rolled her eyes. “They started yelling at each other, and he accused her of cheating. There's a chance they might've broken up yesterday or something.” She frowned, a worried expression crossing over features. When she got home afterward, Clarke wouldn't let herself entertain that thought for too long. Breaking up someone's relationship would be horrible. If they really ended things over Clarke _standing_ next to one of them, maybe they weren't in the best of places anyway. Niylah did openly flirt with her, after all.

 

Raven was silent for a moment, her face looking like she was the slightest bit impressed. “You destroyed one relationship to try and start another. You're an inspiration, Clarke.”

 

“Hey! She never told me to get away from her.” Which was true. Niylah had more than willingly responded to Clarke’s forwardness. Clarke considered consent to be of the utmost importance, and Niylah gave that completely to her. After all, it was just going to be a casual shoulder massage. It's not like Clarke was going to _sit on her face_ right there in the waiting room. She didn't even know Niylah had a boyfriend; she would've picked another nurse if she had known.“They made a scene, tried to pull me into their argument, and when her boyfriend left, she just shoved two tickets at me and told me to get the fuck out.”

 

“Does Abby know you were planning on making out with her head nurse?”

 

Clarke sighed and started walking in the other direction out of the queue line; she couldn't see Lexa walking around in the coaster station. “Nope.”

 

“How old is this Niylah girl?”

 

“Like 26? The fuck if I know.”

 

“As I said, Griffin. You're an inspiration.”

 

* * *

 

 

Lexa wasn't supposed to be scheduled for work today. However, after receiving a phone call at the crack of dawn on her cell phone, she was suddenly scheduled to work an entire eight hours. Upon answering, Titus had immediately snapped into her ear that Lincoln had called in sick with a stomach bug, and Lexa would be taking his place. But Lincoln worked in the stands. Not the rides. That meant dealing with crying teenage girls when their lanky boyfriends failed to score them that Charmander plushie. She failed to understand how people could fail so horribly at throwing darts at water balloons. If Lexa had the energy, she would've simply played a round or two for them just so they would stop crying. Or yelling. Jesus Christ, _help_ her.

 

Thankfully, she had been moved out of the game stands after telling a particularly muscular man that, “ _No,_ _you cannot aim the darts at me when I tell that you didn't win_.” Titus looked about ready to fire her after that one.

 

Which is how Lexa ended up in her favorite booth in the park.

 

The candle stand.

 

She wasn't really sure why Polis Park sold candles in the middle of its main walkway. Every customer who came up to the stand looked at her a little curiously, possibly thinking that Lexa was scamming people in broad daylight. But no. She was by herself and surrounded by rows and rows of wonderfully scented candles. Red, green, blue, white, black, yellow, purple. Even those pretentiously named colors that she didn't entirely understand. Although the candles didn't sell too well, which was most likely because of the PP logo on the side of the glass casing. Someone should really petition to change the park’s logo. It was hurting business.

 

Though this particular stand didn't have air conditioning, which wasn't entirely smart with wax candles around, Lexa was already dreading leaving it in the next two hours. She didn't want to go work at another stand.

 

Also, Clarke had yet to get back to Lexa. Four days now, and she hadn't heard from her at all. Anya tried to comfort her by saying that maybe she didn't find the paper in her bag. “ _Maybe it fell out, and she never got to see it._ ” Or Clarke wasn't interested-- that was also an option. She was trying to remain optimistic, but Lexa didn't have a whole lot of practice in that.

 

She’d just have to talk to Anya again about it later. Especially with the way a wide-eyed elderly woman was swiftly approaching the candle stand.

 

 

Anya decided she didn't like when Lexa wasn't working alongside her. Often times, they'd find themselves on identical shifts, and they would work on the same few rides during the duration of the day. It gave her someone to talk to, and it helped the long hours at work pass by just a little quicker.

 

She met Lexa when they were eight years old. Her parents told her they were taking in another little girl, and the little girl was to be her baby sister. Even if they were the same age; months still counted.

 

Anya had been completely opposed to the idea.

 

Looking back, she remembered sitting in her family's living room with her knees together and her hands settled in her lap. Her father left early that morning to finalize the paperwork, and her mother nagged her for an hour about manners and treating the girl with respect. She made her dislike of the girl fairly obvious, and her parents were most likely worried that Anya would make her new sister’s life a living hell.

 

When her father ushered her new little sister through their front door, however, Anya felt like she might've judged her too quickly. She had trouble getting along with the other kids her age, that was true, but the girl with her brown mane of wild curls didn't seem too bad. Eight year old Lexa had more hair than body.

 

After the first few weeks, Anya had found a best friend in Lexa. They attended the same school, enjoyed most of the same hobbies, and Lexa seemed to look up to her. Their relationship hadn't changed too much since. Now instead of living with their parents, they shared an apartment together on Polis University’s campus.

 

Today was the first time in a while that Lexa wasn't working with her. It was her sister's day off, so she was already planning on working alone, but having her on the opposite side of the park on booth duty was a special sort of torture.

 

Unfortunately, Anya had been stationed in kiddie land on this blisteringly hot Tuesday. Because many children didn't reach the certain height requirements for the larger rides, Polis Park had a section devoted to miniature roller coasters and gentle swing rides.

 

It went without saying that it was Anya’s least favorite place in the entire park. Titus had it out for her. That had to be it.

 

In another unfortunate turn of events, she'd been stationed at the ride fondly dubbed as the _Mini Heda_ , which happened to be the most popular ride in kiddie land. The track was an almost exact replica of the towering coaster on the other end of the park-- without the sheer size, sharp turns, and massive loops, of course. Since she'd been put there an hour and a half ago, Anya had dealt with a constant stream of people in line. Unlike the usual complaints and vomiting incidents Anya would receive on its sister coaster, _Mini Heda_ consisted of sticky fingers and screaming toddlers. When would Anya have the patience for this?

 

“Ma’am?” She was startled out of her thoughts by a disheveled-looking woman nervously standing in front of her. Three children were running circles around her feet, and a baby was settled in her arms. “I have to get on next, and I was just wondering if you could,” the woman paused and shifted the baby into Anya’s chest. “Thank you.”

 

Anya blinked, eyes wide. “No, no, we're not allowed. Take the-”

 

“Sorry!” The woman called back, already buckling her seat belt in the very front of the small coaster car.

 

She looked around frantically and made eye contact with a cackling Luna behind her. Everyone else working with them seemed to be ignoring the situation entirely. Anya had a _baby_ in her arms.

 

Realizing that she was actually holding someone's child, Anya immediately stretched out her arms, holding the tiny human out in front of her as far away from her as possible. The baby seemed to be babbling away happily, unaware that their current babysitter was having a mental crisis. Drool was consistently streaming down the child’s chin, and Anya was sure that she was about to hyperventilate.

 

“That kid’s gonna start crying soon.” Luna chuckled, now brushing shoulders with Anya. “You're kind of terrifying to children.” She paused for a moment, raising an eyebrow in thought. “And to adults.”

 

In any other situation, Anya would've snapped back with some witty comment in reply, but she was much too focused on the little person in her arms. The little person who was now desperately trying to reach for her hair.

 

“This isn't allowed,” Anya stated, almost desperately, eyes still just as wide as before. “We can't watch people’s _children_ while their parents are on rides, Luna.”

 

“Yeah, usually people just leave their sunglasses or purses with us. Not their young.” Luna shrugged. “Here, I'll take the kid.” She stretched out her arms, a comforting smile on her face directed at the baby, though it might've been for Anya as well.

 

Anya immediately shoved the squirming baby at Luna, and she was all too happy to be rid of the slobbering mess. Not to mention that the baby’s diaper was seemingly getting warmer and warmer. Luna, apparently having a way with kids, was cooing at the child and tickling bootie-covered feet with her right hand.

 

“I'm taking my break now,” Anya mumbled under her breath, making her way over to the employee exit. She had enough of children for the day; the fact that she didn't drop the baby was good enough for her.

 

Luckily for her, _Mini Heda_ was right at the opening of kiddie land, meaning that she didn't have to walk very far to get back to the main park. Seeing that most of the people in the crowd were taller than her waist, Anya let out a sigh relief. Dealing with grimy kids all day was getting tiring, and she was not looking forward to her next shift at _Natblida._

 

_“_ Hey! Hey, you!”

 

Anya kept walking.

 

Though the voice sounded nearby and urgent, she doubted the person was trying to get her attention. Not when there were literally hundreds of other people walking around her. A hand grasped her left arm tightly, and Anya swiveled ready to shatter someone’s jaw.

 

“Woah,” the woman holding her arm gasped, released her, and took a step back. Her bangs were parted to her right side and had an unnatural height to them. She looked like the sort of suburban mom who would stomp into her local _Bed, Bath, and Beyond_ angrily and demand to see the manager. “I just wanted to inform you,” she continued, absentmindedly rocking the stroller next to her, “that there are two girls cutting the line at that one claw ride.” Scoffing, she smoothed back her hair with her newly manicured fingers, a constipated kind of look on her face. “A friend of mine even said she saw them cut ahead of her son when he was in line earlier.”

 

Anya raised an eyebrow dauntingly. The woman had a baby in a stroller and a toddler peering up at Anya eagerly. She flinched. It wasn't likely that the woman was with anyone else here; she was probably just trying to make the situation seem worse than it really was.

 

“Why don't you tell security?” She asked, irritation bubbling in the pit of her stomach as her pulsing arm reminded her what exactly this woman had done to get her attention. “That's on them, not me.”

 

“Well, I didn't see any around,” the woman narrowed her eyes, unintentionally sticking her nose in the air. “You work here. You do it.”

 

The woman was walking away before she could offer an equally nasty response, and Anya’s eyelid was furiously twitching. Terrible customer service didn't just happen in retail or food places, it seemed. Anya really needed to pick a career where she wouldn't have to work with so many people.

 

By ‘ _that one claw ride’,_ Anya assumed the woman was talking about _The City of Light,_ which she personally thought was a horrendous ride. It went almost completely upside down and traveled at an incredibly unsafe speed, leaving a lot of its passengers feeling ill and completely out of it for the rest of the day. Mechanically, it was hard to keep it working and had a tendency to be down more often than it was up and running. Thankfully, Anya had only been stationed at it a handful of times over the summer, and each time she was with Lexa-- who hated the ride even more than she did.

 

The sex-deprived housewife would never know if Anya went to check on her complaint or not. Despite not wanting to deal with throwing people out the park, Anya took her break a little early and wasn't exactly hungry yet. It's not like she didn't have time to kill.

 

Fuck it. She had enough anger to do this.

 

Line jumping went against Polis Park’s policy, and though she thought it might've been a little too severe of a punishment, anyone caught could possibly be escorted from the park. Realistically, that very rarely happened, but Anya was a little curious to see it. In this type of situation, having someone from security with her would be ideal, but the snooty woman was right-- there wasn't a single security guard nearby.

 

How safe.

 

Anya would do it on her own then.

 

The ride was thankfully fairly close to her and wouldn't take much walking to get there. It was only across the way, and she wanted to make it to _The City of Light_ before the supposed offenders left. Having no description of the two, she would just have to search the line herself. How difficult could it be to spot people blatantly walking through an unmoving queue?

 

Politely nodding to one of her coworkers stationed at the entrance of the ride-- what was his name again? Nico? Nicholas? Nyko? Why didn't the lady tell _him_?-- Anya squatted and shimmied her way under one of the metal railings. No way was she walking the entire line. Walking about halfway, Anya used her height to her advantage and peered over the tops of sweat-coated heads. After scanning her surroundings for a moment, she saw them. There were two girls bumping into other people and making their way to the front of the station. Just as she was about to go toward them, however, the girls stopped dead in their tracks, looked at each other, and began walking back to where Anya was. They were turning around? Why would they cut so many people only to turn around? They didn't even ride the damn thing. Not that Anya really blamed them; the ride was a death trap.

 

She stood in place, widening her stance to block them from leaving and crossing her arms over her chest to make her seem more threatening, even if Luna believed that she already looked it. As the girls neared her, Anya swore she heard one of them singing that five hundred miles song. She'd recognize it anywhere-- Lexa hummed it constantly. Still not looking in front of them, the girls were walking straight toward her. Sighing, Anya stood her ground and made sure she was steady enough for when they most likely collided with her.

 

And that they did.

 

She closed her eyes briefly, but thankfully didn't get pushed back too far. Upon opening her eyes, Anya stopped. The girls looked slightly familiar, though she did see hundreds of new faces every day. It was possible that they had been to the park before, and she just remembered them from then. One was a brunette who was eyeing her curiously, and the blonde looked slightly in shock.

 

“If you really want to get through lines faster,” Anya started, feeling a part of her soul die when she realized what she had to say first, “try out our fast pass, which is only an additional fee on top of our ticket prices,” she continued, droning on in monotone. She lost count of how many times she had to relay this information to people in the last three months. “You'll be allowed to skip ahead significantly in line, and even-”

 

“Is your name Anya?”

 

Okay, maybe she did know these girls. Polis Park’s uniforms didn't give them name tags, and she didn't remember telling anyone her name recently.

 

“I could have you removed from the park for jumping ahead in line.”

 

The brunette girl-- who might've been the one who pinched her on the ass after riding _Pauna_ a few days ago-- blanched and nudged the blonde. “I told you we should've just went through the exit. We've only been on one ride, and we’re about to be booted from the park.”

 

“Went through the exit? Weren't you cutting people?” Anya frowned. What she overheard didn't make much sense. If they were going to the front of the line, but not to ride anything, what was the point?

 

The brunette girl blinked, looking a bit like a fish out of water. “We’re trying to find som-”

 

“Can you take us to Lexa?”

 

So blondie knew her sister. Thankfully, they were in the empty part of the line now, and Anya leaned her hands back against one of the railings for support.

 

“What's your name?”

 

“Clarke.”

 

_Oh. That's_ who she is. Lexa would kill her if she threw out her little girlfriend. Anya chuckled, leaning her head back in disbelief. The girl in front of her was the reason she had to listen to Lexa whine for almost an entire week now. This is the girl her sister was completely stressed about, and Anya was just about to force her to leave the park. She would leave that part out when she told Lexa all about her day later.

 

“My sister’s pretty hung up on you,” Anya admitted. “Is that who you were looking for?”

 

Clarke tilted her head to the side in confusion, but before she could say anything, the girl next to her moved forward. “You're her sister?”

 

Anya nodded, not wanting to tell them how exactly she became Lexa’s sister. If Lexa wanted to pursue a relationship with the blonde, then she'd tell her that she was adopted eventually. It wasn't her place to say anything. “If you're trying to find which ride she's working on right now,” she started, “you're not going to be finding her anytime soon.”

 

Both of their faces noticeably dropped, and Anya wasn't entirely sure what that meant. They wanted to find Lexa-- they had told her as much-- but couldn't Clarke just message her whenever she wanted? Lexa supposedly slipped the girl her number, so searching far and wide for the girl in a large amusement park seemed a bit excessive. Not to mention a waste of time.

 

“She's not working rides today,” Anya continued when neither girl said anything. “She got moved to the booths.” On her break, which wasn't supposed to be for another hour so, Anya planned on stopping by and spending some time with Lexa. Luna told her earlier that her sister had been moved out of the gaming tents because of a dart incident and was now working at the smaller booths. Chances are she'd be working by herself and with very little customers. How that was a punishment, Anya didn't entirely know. “You can come with me to find her.”

 

Clarke nodded, perhaps a little too eagerly, and grabbed the other girl’s hand, pulling her along behind her. Rolling her eyes, Anya shoved her way to the front of them and took the lead.

 

* * *

 

 

Clarke's head was swimming. Anya-- who knew she was actually Lexa’s sister?-- was bringing them back to the entrance and, most importantly, to the person they came here to find. If they hadn't literally bumped into her today, she and Raven would have never known that Lexa wasn't working on rides. They'd been in the park for quite a few hours now, and they hadn't even thought to check any of the stands.

 

“Is there a reason you came all the way here?” Anya asked, peeking back at her from over her left shoulder. “Lexa tells me she gave you her number,” she explained, “and that you haven't called her.”

 

Raven snorted from beside her, and Clarke was struck with the urge to elbow her in the ribs. Her friend was getting too much enjoyment out of this. Before Raven could say anything, Clarke shot her a glare and turned back to Anya. “I lost her number.”

 

Anya considerably slowed their pace, glancing back at Clarke incredulously. “You came here to, what? Get her number again?”

 

Clarke blushed and felt herself unintentionally shrug. “Yeah.”

 

She sped up a bit but still remained focused on Clarke. “Seriously?” Anya shook her head. “She's got a Facebook.”

 

Raven outwardly laughed, earning a confused look from Anya.

 

“What's your name?”

 

“Raven.”

 

Anya narrowed her eyes. “You're the one I caught pinching my ass the other day, aren't you?”

 

Raven winced and stepped behind Clarke, using her as a shield from the other girl; she knew Anya looked a little familiar. While Clarke was busy flirting with Lexa, Raven had been dared by Octavia to do something sexual to the ‘mean-looking worker who strapped us in’. Never backing down from a dare, Raven went ahead and did it right after they got out of the coaster. She thought she had gotten away with it, but she obviously hadn't turned around and sprinted for the exit fast enough.

 

Thankfully for Raven, Anya let the subject drop and kept walking forward. Clarke, who hadn't paid a bit of attention to their conversation, was beginning to feel nervous. Of course Lexa had a Facebook. Who didn't? Why _did_ she come here then? To see her in person? To make a better physical impression? She wasn't entirely sure. Lexa was almost a complete stranger to her, and yet Clarke went entirely out of her way just to come up here again.

 

“I don't know which one she's at right now,” Anya informed them, stopping just in front of a long row of stands, “but it would be in one of these.”

 

Without needing to say anything else, the three split up in different directions and walked alongside each stand, peering into the openings over the lines of people. Clarke tightened her bag around her shoulders and continued forward, a little worried that she wouldn't see Lexa when going by.

 

A loud crash resounded in the vicinity, and Clarke stopped immediately when she saw what was happening in front of her. There was a girl only inches in front of her running after what appeared to be rolling candles. Her face was covered by brown curls, and she was bent toward the ground as she tried to frantically gather them all in her arms. Clarke gaped, slightly taken aback. She was about to step forward and offer her assistance when the girl, whose face was still covered by her hair, started speaking to her, “I’m sorry. Did any of them hit you? There was just this old woman, and she must've been excited or something. She was buying a lot from me, and one of her bags smacked against this big stack I had on the front counter. It was a display, really, but they had such _nice_ scents, and I wanted to have them in the front,” she rambled quickly, counting the candles that she had against her chest. “Again, I am so sorry.”

 

The brunette girl stood up, managing to flip her hair back without touching it. Their eyes met, and Clarke could feel her throat drying up. _Lexa._ She had almost inadvertently run into Lexa. Well, really, Lexa almost ran into her. Lexa’s eyes were wide, and her grip on the candles seemed to slacken.

 

“Clarke!” Forgetting what she had previously been doing, Lexa dropped the candles out of surprise, shattering most of them on the spot. They were still staring at each other, though the shards of glass on the ground around them were hard to cancel out. Breaking their eye contact, Lexa winced and leaned down to piece through what was still salvageable. She glanced up at Clarke with sad eyes, a small pout forming on her lips. “What are you doing here?”

 

Clarke gently dropped to her knees, checking to make sure she wasn't kneeling on any of the broken glass. She swept a section to her left into a small pile and met Lexa’s gaze. “I'm so sorry I made you drop these, Lexa,” she mumbled a little guiltily, ignoring the girl’s question.

 

Lexa’s face brightened a bit, and she felt herself beginning to smile. “I thought we talked about this, Clarke. Don't say you're sorry if it isn't your fault.”

 

Clarke chuckled, any nervous tension about seeing Lexa again beginning to disappear. The girl had a way with words, she knew that much. Whether that be with flirting or comforting, it didn't really matter. Lexa always seemed to know exactly what to say. A forlorn-looking janitor approached them with a broom in one hand and a dustpan in the other, motioning for the two girls to get up and walk away.

 

They stood in front of the stand as they watched the man clean up what remained of the mess. Thankfully, Lexa wasn't holding all of the runaway candles, but four or five of them had been completely ruined in the accident. If she did inventory correctly, there was a chance Titus wouldn't yell at her for losing any product.

 

“You never called,” Lexa breathed out, finally coming to terms with who was beside her. It was a shock to see her-- what remained of the candles could tell her that-- but she wasn't sure how she felt with Clarke actually here with her. What if she was here to tell her that she wasn't interested? Why would she even have to do that? Wasn't that just a little bit cruel? She could've just continued to ignore her, and Lexa would've gotten the hint.

 

“My mom threw out your number.”

 

Lexa frowned, wondering what on earth she had done to anger the girl’s mother. Maybe she was homophobic and didn't approve? God, if that was true, she could've possibly put Clarke’s life in danger.

 

“Wait, no, she didn't mean to,” Clarke corrected herself, noticing how tense Lexa had become. “I left it in my room, and she thought it was just a scrap of paper.”

 

Lexa nodded, still facing the saddened man who was just about to finish up his cleaning. Clarke watched her for a moment before she took her phone from her pocket; bringing up her contacts, she handed her phone to a slightly confused Lexa.

 

“It'd be a shame to come all this way and not get your number.”

 

Lexa smiled and typed her information into Clarke’s phone before having her do the same to hers.

 

“Just in case you lose your contacts too,” she explained.

  
Clarke opened Lexa’s contact and chuckled. She was worried she'd have to deal with what to save her name under again, but it looked like Lexa chose for her. _Lexa Woods_ with the little roller coaster emoji next to it.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clarke and Lexa finally have each other's numbers.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this chapter was supposed to be up forever ago, but my laptop broke. sorry :(
> 
> i also highkey hate my writing in this chapter, but i really wanted to make sure i updated before the end of this week.
> 
> Clarke Griffs- Clarke's contact name in Lexa's phone  
> Clarkey- Clarke's contact name in Octavia's phone  
> The Only Blake- Octavia's contact name in Clarke's phone
> 
> also: this chapter is pretty heavy on the texting

**[8:24pm] Lexa Woods: I'm a little embarrassed to say that I didn't know your name had an E at the end.**

 

**[8:37pm] Lexa Woods: We probably should've checked to make sure we put our numbers in correctly before you left.**

 

**[9:09pm] Lexa Woods: Shit, you didn’t give me a fake number or anything, did you? Haha.**

 

**[9:54pm] Lexa Woods: Hello?**

 

With her comforter snugly wrapped around her body, Clarke let out a sigh of content. Raven had dropped her off about a half an hour ago, both agreeing that today had been a success. Her thighs, on the other hand, didn't seem to agree. Clarke's skin was sore to touch and was in dire need of a relieving lotion. Her mother, for whatever reason, was already asleep in her bed and supposedly had been since she got home, according to her father. She'd just have to ask her for one of those lifesaving creams she kept in her medicine cabinet in the morning.

 

Clarke had spent so much time staring at her newly acquired contact that her phone’s battery died before she and Raven even left the park. Her friend also failed to inform her that her car charger was ‘merely for decoration’ and that she was ‘trying to tinker with it to make it work again’. Though she plugged it in as soon as she got home, it certainly was taking its time to turn back on. The white charging wire, which was more than a little frayed at the tip, was plugged into a cluttered extension cord on the floor next to her bed, while her phone was lying face down on her end table.

 

The part of the table underneath her phone screen lit up with a glow of white, and Clarke leaned over to grab it immediately. “Oh, good,” she mumbled, watching it begin to boot back up. At the start, Clarke was met with her front wallpaper, which was an unfortunately timed picture of Octavia, Raven, and Clarke all jumping up in the air at the same time. Trying to, anyway. Clarke's sentimental moment was ruined, however, when her phone pinged four times in a row, signaling that it had definitely connected back to service. Blinking, Clarke realized the notifications had been four new texts from _Lexa_.

 

Clarke's original plan had been to text Lexa first. Set their pace or whatever. As she scrolled through each message, Clarke figured that was already thrown out the window. The girl thought she gave her a fake number, for fuck sake.

 

**[10:12pm] Clarke Griffs: Sorry my phone died :/**

 

**[10:12pm] Clarke Griffs: Did you get fired??**

 

She could've probably been more eloquent, yes, but a change of topic was definitely necessary.

 

**[10:13pm] Lexa Woods: Oh! No problem. I added you on Facebook just in case. Hope that's okay.**

 

**[10:14pm] Lexa Woods: As of right now, I'm still employed. The boss who completely hates me was already gone, and his replacement doesn't entirely dislike me.**

 

Clarke chuckled. Of course Lexa typed perfectly-- and a little like a nerd, she'll admit. Pulling down her notifications tab, Clarke shook her head when she saw that Lexa _had_ added her on Facebook no less than ten minutes ago. If there was any question of Lexa not being interested in her, it was gone now. And Clarke was the one people called impatient.

 

**[10:15pm] Clarke Griffs: It's cool I'll accept it when I feel like opening the app**

 

**[10:15pm] Clarke Griffs: Did you have to pay for the candles you broke I feel like I should pitch in for those**

 

**[10:16pm] Clarke Griffs: I’m partly to blame don't argue with me on this**

 

**[10:16pm] Lexa Woods: No, keep your money. I shouldn't have dropped them like that.**

 

**[10:17pm] Lexa Woods: If I have to pay anything, they'd most likely just take it out of my paycheck.**

 

She frowned, and Clarke could feel her stomach twisting unpleasantly at the thought. Clarke didn't work; she didn't have to. That sounded terrible, but Clarke struggled with school by itself. Adding a job on top of her classes would cause Clarke to most likely fail her senior year. Often times, older adults, and even her peers, would ask what sort of things she did outside of school, and when she told them that she didn't have a job, they would immediately label her as lazy. Or spoiled. Or stupid. But that simply wasn't the case. Juggling school and work seemed like an impossible feat to Clarke Griffin. Here Lexa was-- a college student who was most likely trying to pay her way through school. Though she didn't know her financial situation, she didn't feel right about money being taken away from the girl.

 

**[10:19pm] Clarke Griffs: Let me make it up to you then**

 

**[10:20pm] Clarke Griffs: Please**

 

**[10:20pm] Lexa Woods: No way am I taking your money, Clarke.**

 

She shouldn't do it.

 

She was going to do it.

 

**[10:21pm] Clarke Griffs: Then let me take you out**

 

**[10:21pm] Clarke Griffs: On me**

 

In all honesty, she was expecting a reply right away. Lexa was typing quickly, and all of her previous messages came almost directly after Clarke’s. She sat there for roughly five minutes watching Lexa type, stop typing, and start up again.

 

Just as Clarke clicked the Facebook app with full intentions to accept Lexa’s friend request, her phone received another message. Assuming it was Lexa, she went back to her messages only to see one new text from Octavia. Shit.

 

**[10:26pm] The Only Blake: You cheated on me today.**

 

Clarke raised an eyebrow, suddenly more confused than worried. She was expecting her friend to confront her for hanging out with Raven without inviting her. If she were in her position, she'd definitely be upset. The girls always went places together. Her message seemed more directed at what you'd send a significant other, and as far as Clarke knew, Octavia wasn't seeing anyone.

 

**[10:27pm] Clarkey: O? Were you supposed to send this to someone else**

 

**[10:27pm] The Only Blake: What**

 

**[10:28pm] The Only Blake: No**

 

**[10:28pm] The Only Blake: This is for you, Griffin**

 

**[10:29pm] Clarkey: ?**

 

**[10:29pm] The Only Blake: Don't ? me**

 

**[10:30pm] The Only Blake: You hung out with Raven and I wasn't there**

 

**[10:30pm] The Only Blake: Tbh I'm not even mad I'm sad**

 

**[10:31pm] Clarkey: I'm sorry :( We didn't know if you'd be able to go with us**

 

**[10:31pm] Clarkey: We didn't wanna hurt your feelings you know we wouldn't do that purposely**

 

As expected, the message was seen, but Octavia didn't start typing a reply. The girl just needed some time to cool off; she'd probably forget about it in the next week or two.

 

The moment her phone screen locked, it lit up again.

 

**[10:34pm] Lexa Woods: A date?**

 

Clarke's eyes widened. She was thinking it, but she figured Lexa wouldn’t outwardly come out with it.

 

**[10:35pm] Clarke Griffs: I would definitely call it that yeah**

 

**[10:35pm] Lexa Woods: Could we get ice cream?**

 

Clarke chuckled, scooting herself closer to her bed’s headboard. Lexa didn’t really seem like a sweet tooth sort of person; her thigh muscles-- and muscles in general-- most likely didn’t come from eating a whole lot of ice cream. She almost expected the girl to ask if they could eat at one of those healthy restaurants that have lettuce in all of their dishes. Perhaps she was assuming too much about the girl.

 

**[10:36pm] Clarke Griffs: Well I’m not lactose intolerant so**

 

**[10:36pm] Clarke Griffs: Ice cream’s fine is there a specific place you wanna go**

 

**[10:37pm] Lexa Woods: What about Grounders? It’s on Polis University’s campus. I’ll pick you up if you’re unsure of where to go.**

 

**[10:38pm] Clarke Griffs: Yeah sure I’ve never been there**

 

**[10:38pm] Lexa Woods: And I’m finally off tomorrow.**

 

**[10:39pm] Clarke Griffs: Oh cool we can go then. I’ll text you my address and a time after I talk to my parents**

 

**[10:40pm] Lexa Woods: They have the best fried ice cream. You should try it while we’re there.**

 

Maybe she did judge her too quickly. Lexa eating ice cream seemed like a stretch, but _fried_ ice cream was an entirely other deal. She must do more working out than she originally thought.

 

**[10:44pm] Clarke Griffs: Someone should really contact your Dean**

 

**[10:45pm] Lexa Woods: What? Why?**

 

**[10:45pm] Clarke Griffs: His school is named PU and his theme park’s logo says PP**

* * *

 

She had a _date_. Though she didn’t exactly tell her parents all of the details, they knew that she, Clarke Griffin, was going for ice cream with someone they’d never met. Clarke had gotten the usual questions; _Who are you going out with? Where are you going? What time will you be home? Text me when you get there. Let us know if you plan on going anywhere else._ They weren’t all questions exactly, but she’s heard the parental spiel enough times to understand what they were trying to say.

 

Though Jake and Abby were understandably hesitant about their daughter going on a date with a girl they knew nothing about, Clarke felt like she might be more nervous than they were.

 

With her mom’s lotion coating the inside of her thighs, a Victoria Secret bra clasped underneath her dress shirt, and a blue snapback placed precariously on the top of her head, Clarke stood waiting at her front door. Lexa was due to pick her up in the next few minutes, and Clarke doubted that the girl had ever been late to anything her life. Clarke started getting dressed hours before just to make sure she was ready when Lexa would eventually arrive.

 

By some terrible stroke of luck, both of Clarke’s parents were home. She figured that, being a weekday, at least one of them would be occupied with work when she left for her date. It seemed as if everyone decided to take off work today.

 

“Clarke? Honey?” Her mother called from the dining room as she fumbled around with a few plates. “Do you need any money?”

 

Clarke blinked and glanced down at her wallet. Twenty seven dollars and thirty four cents. She’d counted earlier. The point of this date was for Clarke to pay Lexa back; she was meant to buy for the both of them tonight.

 

Doing that with less than thirty bucks would be impossible.

 

She closed her eyes briefly and let out sad sigh. Clarke hated asking her parents for money. Technically, though, _Abby_ was the one who asked her. She’d have to swallow her pride this time around.

 

“Wouldn’t hurt.” She leaned her head against the glass door, watching a construction worker in the next yard struggle to keep his jeans above his waist. _What are they even doing over there anyway?_

 

She felt someone grab her wallet from her hands, and she looked away from the construction site to see her father tucking a few extra bills into the zipper slot. He smiled up at her, and winked while handing it back to her, “Woo the pants off her, kid.”

 

“Jake!” Abby scolded, peeking her head into the foyer with a disapproving look on her face. “Seriously?”

 

He winced and glanced back at Clarke apologetically, “Not literally,” Jake assured her, “Don’t, uh, don’t have sex or anything.”

 

Abby groaned, and with a muttered, “ _Jesus Christ_ ,” ducked back into the dining room.

 

“You know that’s not what I meant, right?” Her father asked, “I wouldn’t-”

 

“Dad,” Clarke stopped him. “Please don’t.”

 

Jake nodded, slowly backing away from her. “Have fun, okay? Looks like your ride’s here.”

 

Clarke whipped her head around quickly, the uncomfortable encounter with her parents now the furthest thing from her mind. He was right; Lexa, in an old-looking Chevrolet, had pulled into her driveway. She could see Lexa through her windshield, and if Clarke took any longer, she might decide to come up to the door. That wasn’t happening with a rabid Abby and Jake Griffin in the house.

 

“Tell her to come in!” She heard her mother yell while she snuck out the door. Abby would probably have a few choice words for her later, but she didn’t want Lexa to have to face her parents. _Clarke_ didn’t even want to face them half the time.

 

Lexa, nervous that she had gotten the address wrong, visibly slumped in relief at the sight of Clarke coming toward her car. She had driven dangerously under the speed limit out of fear that she would miss the turn for the girl’s street. Polis University was about twenty or so minutes away, and Lexa hadn’t strayed too far from campus yet. It’d be a while before she got used to some of the back roads around town. Her phone map would probably be the only way they would get to the ice cream parlor in one piece.

 

“Hey,” Clarke offered, sliding into the front seat of Lexa’s car. She slammed the door behind her roughly, and the glove department shook a little from the force.

 

“Hi.” Lexa smiled. “You look nice.”

 

“Oh, thank you. So do you.”

 

Neither of them said anything, but their shared smiles spoke for itself. Perhaps they weren’t entirely comfortable around each other yet, and that was perfectly fine. That would come with time-- they’d get there eventually.

 

The ride to Grounders was relatively uneventful. Other than a little boy flipping them off at a red light, and an uncomfortable love ballad playing on the radio while Lexa attempted to park, they were both content. Grounders, tucked away in a corner of Polis University’s campus, had quite a homey feel to it. In faded block letters above the entryway was the name of the establishment with a _Since 1929_ underneath it in a smaller font. The light fixtures above each booth were dimly lit, and each table top was a laminated version of the menu. All in all, it was a perfect place for a first date. Lexa had chosen well.

 

“Sup, my name’s Elmer, and I’ll be serving you this evening,” a boy with a bowl cut greeted them, tapping his name tag with his pointer finger. “I’ll let you ladies look over the menu for a few minutes, okay?” He flipped his bangs and walked away before either of them could say anything.

 

“Someone actually named their millennial kid _Elmer_ ,” Lexa snorted, lazily skimming the menu in front of her. She’d been here with Anya more times than she could count. Her order wasn’t going to change any time soon.

 

Clarke chuckled and peeked over to where Elmer was waiting on another table. “I was thinking the same thing.”

 

Lexa looked up, making accidental eye contact with Clarke. Both of them had a smile on their face and amusement twinkling in their eyes. They held their smiles for a moment before they both started laughing, earning a few glares from a few surrounding customers. When Elmer returned to the table to take their order, they still hadn’t managed to pull it together, and the poor boy retreated from them a little nervously, a notepad tightly in his grip.

 

“I’m sorry, Clarke. I don’t know what came over me,” Lexa apologized, though she was still lightly chuckling.

 

“You don’t hear me complaining.” Clarke nudged her calf under the table. _Muscles of steel._ She cleared her throat, urging her blushing cheeks to go back to their original color. “I haven’t laughed like that in a long time.”

 

“Me neither.”

 

They fell into an easy silence as Clarke began reading through the different flavors of ice cream, occasionally asking Lexa what she thought of a particularly eye-catching one. After a short debate, they both agreed on ordering the fried ice cream-- with a chocolate cone side order for Clarke.

 

Elmer eventually returned to their table, though he seemed more than a little frightened to be there. Raucous laughter must not happen very often in his workplace.

 

“Two fried ice creams and a cone? Oh, I didn’t get you drinks.” He frowned, bringing a hand up to rub at the back of his neck. “I can jot those down too while I’m here.”

 

They’d been too taken with each other to even notice their lack of drinks.

 

“Water’s fine,” Clarke answered.

 

“Mountain Dew.”

 

Lexa watched Elmer turn away before facing Clarke again. Clarke’s facial expression, however, was slightly concerning. Her mouth was set in a sneer, and it looked as if she just swallowed an entire gallon of sour milk. Blinking, Lexa opened her mouth to ask her what had gone wrong in only a matter of minutes, but no words would come out.

 

“ _Mountain Dew?_ ” Clarke practically spit, “You like _Mountain Dew_?”

 

“I feel like I’m supposed to say no.”

 

“You literally just ordered the worst drink known to man.”

 

“Thank… you?”

 

Clarke grinned at Lexa’s squirming frame. It was true-- Clarke hated Mountain Dew, but of course she didn’t care if Lexa drank it. As long as she didn’t force it down her own throat, the other girl could do whatever the hell she wanted with it.

 

“It’s fine. Just keep it far from me, got it?” She asked, though her tone was anything but serious. Clarke wasn’t letting a date be ruined because of a glass of Mountain Dew.

 

Overall, the date had gone wonderfully. The rest of the time was spent teasing Elmer and wiping smeared ice cream from each other’s lips. Elmer had unfortunately finished his shift before the two were done eating, and he had been replaced with some angry-looking girl named Echo. _Who in the hell named these people?_ After some persuasive speaking on Clarke’s part, Lexa had caved and ordered herself a cone along with her bowl of fried ice cream. Though Lexa attempted to pay for her own orders, Clarke had won out in the end; the date was supposed to be her treat. She’d have to remember to thank her mom later that night for the extra money. Even if she was still angry about Clarke not introducing her to Lexa before they left.

 

“Tonight was fun,” Clarke admitted, seat belt still buckled as they sat in her driveway. Lexa had parked and turned the car off about ten minutes ago, and the girls had been in constant conversation since. Her living room light was turned on-- she could see it through the curtains, and Clarke knew that her parents were waiting up for her. One of them was, at least. It didn’t help that the porch light had flickered a few times while they were sitting there, which was most likely a hint for Clarke to come inside. She was dreading leaving the car.

 

“It was.” Lexa smiled. “Maybe we can do it again sometime?”

 

Butterflies were flapping around in Clarke’s stomach, and the girl couldn’t fight the happy grin forming on her lips. “I definitely think we can do that.”

 

Lexa nodded, and her left hand clenched the steering wheel rather tightly. “It’ll be on me.” Clarke immediately went to protest, but Lexa just shook her head. “Nope, I’m paying next time. Wherever you want to go.”

 

“Fine,” she relented, feeling a little too exhausted from the day’s events to really put up a good fight. “If we get food again, I call leaving the tip.”

 

“Fine.”

 

Her porch light flickered again, and Clarke sighed, feeling like their lighthearted moment was ruined.

 

“Should I walk you to the door, or?” Lexa asked, voice higher than usual. She probably figured Clarke’s parents would do something to her if she even stepped foot on their lawn. It wasn’t like she was wrong.

 

“No, you’re the lucky one who gets to leave.”

 

“I really did have a good time tonight, Clarke.”

 

Clarke, taking her eyes off her front door for a moment, turned in her seat toward Lexa. The girl was staring at her intently, something unreadable flashing in her eyes. Before she could realize what was happening, Lexa was leaning over and brushing her lips softly against Clarke’s cheek. She pulled back hesitantly, nervousness practically seeping from her every pore.

 

Clarke smiled and pushed the car door open but made no move to leave. “Me too, Lex. Me too.”

 

 


	5. Chapter 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Clarke and Lexa learn a little about each other.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> this took me forever, and it's pretty much a filler chapter/way too short for my liking. however, if my outline is still accurate, there's a 99% chance that the rating moves up to explicit next chapter, so... we'll see.
> 
> ALSO: there's a brief cancer mention, but it's past tense and not a threat to any of the characters, i promise.
> 
> would anyone like to see a pretty woman au? mostly because i have the first chapter almost halfway written.

School was back in session.

 

School was back in session, and Clarke was ready for graduation day.

 

Her new locker was twice as small as her previous ones, she’d been in the counselor’s office three times now to change her schedule, and she wasn’t even able to take her car that morning.

 

Only 177 days left.

 

“Do you have Public Speaking with Kane?” Raven asked, leaning her elbow against a nearby locker. “It says here that the class is overfilled,” she groaned, staring intently down at the creased schedule in her hands.

 

“Nope.” Clarke slammed her locker door shut, briefly pressing her forehead against the cool metal. “They switched me into the other one. I already have some long presentation due next week.”

 

She grimaced, “Who do you have?”

 

“Pike.”

 

“Gross.”

 

Clarke grinned, glancing down the other side of the hallway. The area was filled to the brim with all sorts of different kids-- ones who were running, sitting, yelling, reenacting vines, and participating in other questionable activities. A brunette girl in particular, however, caught Clarke’s eye. Octavia, who wasn’t facing either of them, was struggling to shove the books in her arms into her locker.

 

“Has she talked to you yet?” Clarke sighed, the smile dropping from her face.

 

Raven nodded, eyes focused on their friend. “Yeah, she did. Don’t worry about it.”

 

“Are we good?”

 

“I’ve got it covered,” she answered. “She’s not actually mad.”

 

Clarke raised a brow, looking between Octavia and Raven. Other than their short text conversation last week, Clarke and Octavia hadn’t spoken. The three of them had the same homeroom together, but it was obvious that the girl had no intention of talking to either of them. She supposed Octavia was more upset over not being invited rather than them going without her.

 

“Your phone’s lighting up.”

 

“Probably my dad. He said he’d text me.” Clarke grabbed her pocket, the white glow from her phone peeking through the cracks in her fingers. She pulled it out slowly, the friction from her jeans making the task more difficult than it should’ve been.

 

**[1:13pm] Lexa Woods: Do you go to Arkadia High?**

 

“Shit.” Clarke blinked, stupidly staring down at her new message. She and Lexa had been speaking regularly, but they hadn’t opened up much with each other. It was a crush, yes, but they both needed to communicate a little more. Hell, Clarke didn’t even know what _year_ of college Lexa was in-- or where she actually came from.

 

**[1:14pm] Lexa Woods: I was just wondering if this was your first day back to school. If so, would you like to do something afterward? My only class today was cancelled.**

 

“Oh, yeah, did you say you need a ride home?” Raven nudged her, a slight look of confusion on her face. “Where’s your car?”

 

“No, uh,” she lowered her phone, “I think Lexa’s gonna pick me up.”

 

Raven’s eyes widened, and she leaned her back against the row of lockers behind her. She was fighting back a smirk, and her shoulders were slightly shaking, most likely out of laughter.

 

“My dad’s getting my brakes fixed. And some other stuff,” Clarke continued, sending the girl a warning glare. “Lexa just asked to hang out after school,” she shrugged. “I'll just get her to pick me up.”

 

“It's already starting.”

 

Clarke, now back to staring at her phone screen, scoffed. Without looking back up, she mumbled, “And what's that mean, Rae?”

 

“You're picking her over me.”

 

She rolled her eyes, fingers quickly moving across the keys.

 

**[1:16pm] Clarke Griffs: Yeah I do**

 

**[1:17pm] Clarke Griffs: We can but could you pick me up after school???? I don't have my car today**

 

**[1:17pm] Lexa Woods: 2:35?**

 

**[1:18pm] Clarke Griffs: Yup**

 

“You're not even going to respond to me, are you, Griffin?”

 

**[1:18pm] Lexa Woods: I’ll be there.**

 

* * *

 

 

Lexa's Chevrolet, Clarke finds, is one of her favorite places to be. Despite the stubborn marks on the windshield, the seats that no longer adjust, and the lack of a working air conditioner, she feels much more relaxed when she's there than anywhere else. Clarke has quite a bit on her mind during the day, especially with school back in, and the break is something she's incredibly grateful for.

 

It could also be Lexa’s presence. That could be doing it.

 

They were driving around in circles, unable to agree on a place. Lexa offered her apartment, Clarke declined. Clarke offered the park near her house, Lexa declined. Though both girls agreed to do something together, they hadn't really planned this far ahead.

 

“You could just find a parking lot. That's what I do with my friends when we can't find anywhere to go.” Clarke shrugged, glancing over at Lexa as she stopped at a red light. “We could just talk. Maybe get some fast food.”

 

Lexa, with one hand on the steering wheel, turned in her seat to face Clarke, a flash of confusion flickering in her eyes. “A parking lot? Don't kids usually only do that when they need a place to get high?”

 

Clarke shrugged. “And when the local Walmart is the only establishment in town that's open twenty four hours.”

 

Lexa nodded slowly, trying to process the words. “This town is… a little bland,” she admitted. “When Anya and I first moved here a few months ago, we had to call an Uber to get us back to campus one night, and, well,” her voice trailed off, and she turned the wheel as the light turned green, “the driver had to come from a neighboring town and smelled suspiciously like dog piss and curry.”

 

“That's,” Clarke let out a laugh, heat rushing to her cheeks, “probably the best description I've ever heard.”

 

“But you're right.” Lexa smiled, a hint of amusement in her tone. “I guess it doesn't really matter where we go. Just as long as we’re hanging out.” As if proving her point, she took a sharp turn to the right, pulling the car up between fading yellow lines. “Welcome to Walmart.”

 

Clarke blinked in surprise, though her smile was still in place. Often times, her nights spent in Walmart’s parking lot weren’t very interesting; it usually involved complaining to the driver to go somewhere else. She and the girls would go into the store once or twice, but being there for more than an hour was a sort of teenage torture. Blowing their money on the same stale processed foods stopped being satisfying after the first few times.

 

“Where are you from originally? Just… from the way you talk, it sounds like you’re from a bigger area.”

 

Lexa roughly turned the key in the ignition, shutting the car off with a small crackling noise coming from the hood. Peering over the steering wheel, she winced, staring at the front of her car with concern. “DC. Polis is a little different-- smaller-- but it’s nice. Definitely the definition of a university town.”

 

“Is your car okay?” Clarke frowned, eyes darting back and forth between Lexa’s face and her battered Chevrolet hood. “Raven does mechanic stuff on the side for some money. You remember her, right? Want me to call her?”

 

She shook her head, breathing out a sigh. “It does this sometimes ‘cause it’s old.” Her phone was in her hands now, thumbs quickly gliding over the bottom of the screen as she typed away. “Don’t worry about it. Anya has a new car. She’ll just have to jump it again.”

 

“Oh.” She leaned back in her seat, a bit at a loss for words. Her own car was getting fixed, and though Raven wasn’t the one working on it, the cost was going to be affordable. Mostly because her parents had offered to cover it. Lexa’s car obviously needed quite a bit of work. Or she just needed a new one in general. The girl most likely wouldn’t take hand outs, but Clarke couldn’t help but feel the slightest bit guilty. “I’ll talk to Raven. She’ll fix anything you need for pretty cheap.”

 

“Yeah, money is,” Lexa paused, shoving her phone into her hoodie pocket, “a little tight right now.” She shrugged, “The park’s hours are down with school back in. Plus it closes for the winter, so Anya and I may have to look for another job.”

 

“The school doesn’t have another job lined up for the people who work there? For when the park isn’t open?”

 

“Well, people will still be working there. Maintaining everything or whatever. It’s just- I’m a ride host, right? So I’m not really needed.”

 

“There might be openings at my mom’s hospital. Like, working in the cafeteria or something. I could talk to her, if you want. Have her pull some str-”

 

“No, no, you don’t have to do that. Anya- I mean, our parents send us money when they can, which helps a lot. It’s only our Freshman year, so money isn’t too much of an issue yet.” She turned in her seat, facing Clarke. “I’m also gonna send in my résumé to Grounders. That way I can give you discounts on their fried ice cream.” Lexa smiled shyly, seemingly embarrassed at Clarke’s offer. Admitting she was short on money to a rich girl-- Clarke’s house spoke for itself-- wasn’t something she was too keen on. Though she was a college student; wasn’t lack of money part of the package?

 

“Is Anya your half-sister? I don’t mean to come off as rude, sorry. I just-”

 

“I get it. I’m white, and she’s not,” she chuckled. “Her- _our_ parents- took me in at eight. Mine divorced pretty much right after I was born, and-”

 

“You don’t need to tell me this if you don’t want to, Lex.” She bit her lip, feeling slightly uncomfortable as the conversation shifted to a darker topic. “I didn’t know it was that personal.”

 

Lexa shook her head, smile widening in an effort to comfort Clarke. “You asked. I think we should start sharing a little more about each other, don’t you?” She raised a single brow, almost flirtatiously, and shifted slightly in her seat. “My parents divorced, and I guess my dad remarried pretty soon after that. So when my mom died of cancer when I was still pretty young, he and his new wife refused to take me in.”

 

“Jesus, I’m so sorry.”

 

She waved it off, still softly smiling. “I know, it was pretty difficult after that, but I've come to terms with it. I’m- It’s gotten easier to deal with as I get older.” Lexa sighed, “I guess my mom was friends with Anya’s parents. They met me a few times, and after a lot of consideration, they decided to adopt me after she died. It was either that or the system.”

 

 _Say something,_ Clarke scolded herself, though her mouth refused to move. She had a feeling Lexa’s home life was a little different than hers, and this only proved it. It didn't bother her, no, she wasn't narrow-minded, but the thought left her slightly… _unsettled_. Having a loving family and access to a large bank account were things Clarke had grown accustomed to over the years; Lexa most likely wouldn't understand that.

 

“Are you seeing anyone?”

 

Her eyes widened a bit, and Clarke felt her throat run dry. Lexa must've felt uncomfortable with her lack of response and decided to move on to the next topic. One that might’ve been arguably more tense than the former.

 

“It's okay if you are, but I just assumed that you weren't. We called that one day at Grounders a date, and I wasn't sure if _this_ was a date. I know we're stuck in a parking lot, and that's not very ideal, but I was kind of hoping that it would end up like that, I guess,” Lexa rambled, slightly winded from refusing to take a breath. “I feel like you aren't, but it doesn't hurt to ask, right? I'm single, in case you were wondering.”

 

Before Clarke could stop herself, she was laughing. A look of hurt, which was barely noticeable at first glance, flashed across Lexa’s face. Clarke shook her head, though she was still widely grinning. “Calm down, Lex,” she reassured her, reaching a hand over the armrest and placing it atop her knuckles. “I'm single, you're single. It's fine.”

 

Lexa nodded stiffly, and her shoulders fell. “I just wasn't sure what we were doing, that's all.”

 

“I thought you had to be dating someone before you have the exes talk?” Clarke kept her smile in place, obviously teasing the other girl. Though with the way Lexa was acting, she wouldn't be surprised if the girl took it seriously.

 

“Oh, I didn't mean exes. Just if you were currently with someone,” Lexa said, blanching. She pulled her hand out from underneath Clarke’s and clicked the button on her seatbelt, starting to shift away from her now. “Anya should be here in a little bit. We can talk about it to pass the time.”

 

“You sure?” Clarke asked, stomach tensing with nerves. _Go ahead and make Lexa uncomfortable around you. Why not, right?_ She should've figured they weren't quite there yet. Not for this type of conversation, anyway. “You don't look too good.”

 

“Her name was Costia,” she started, gaze fixated on one of the holes in the steering wheel. “This isn't tragic or anything, I promise. She just- we dated all through junior high and high school. Well,” Lexa stopped suddenly, as if realizing something, “we broke up Junior year. She moved, and we were going to try long distance, but,” she shrugged, “she didn't really want to.”

 

“How long were you together?”

 

“About five years.”

 

“I've never had a relationship that long. Not even close,” Clarke admitted. “I dated someone in my class for a few months. He hit on Raven while we were together, and we were done after that.” She leaned back into the seat, head thumping slightly against the top of it.

 

“Well, that's Anya at the light.” Lexa pulled the handle on the car door, opening it slightly. A chilling breeze drifted in through the crack, and Clarke barely repressed a shudder. Though Lexa’s car had no air conditioning, the temperature was arguably more comfortable than it was outside. Autumn would be quickly approaching, and Polis would fall victim to colder temperatures. Clarke hated this time of year.

 

“I had a nice time. Even if it was cut a little short.”

 

Lexa blinked and settled back in the driver’s seat. Her left foot was outside of the car, but her full attention was on the girl next to her. “You're leaving? We can go somewhere after Anya jumps my car.”

 

“No, that's okay. I don't wanna bother you. Besides,” she opened her own car door, eyes meeting Lexa’s, “my house is right over that hill, remember?” Clarke tilted her chin upward, motioning toward the patchy grass next to the department store. “I can just walk.”

 

“Let me at least drop you off. Or walk you there.”

 

“I'll be fine,” she leaned across the armrest and pressed a lingering kiss on a baffled Lexa’s cheek, “but I'll text you when I get home, okay? So you know I made it.”

 

Before Lexa could reply, Clarke stepped out of the car and shut the door. The parking lot wasn't too crowded-- they were situated toward the back, meaning only a few of the stalls around them were taken. Two little boys in the car next to them, who were facing her direction through a tinted window, were batting a balloon back and forth, though an adult was nowhere in sight. She couldn't tell, but she hoped the car was running. If not, it was likely someone would be facing child neglect charges on the nightly news. That happened way too often in Polis.

 

Anya’s SUV was swinging toward her, and Clarke had to side step to get out of her way. The girl looked slightly surprised to see her there, but Clarke raised her hand in a sort of ironic wave. When she didn't reciprocate, Clarke chuckled and turned her head back to Lexa. “If you can't get it running, text me. I can get Raven here in an hour to tow it!” She called, and before either of the two sisters could say anything to her, Clarke was halfway up the hill.

**Author's Note:**

> come yell at me on tumblr about it: http://commanderofraccoons.tumblr.com/


End file.
